Activities	According to the AMA Health professions description, electroneurodiagnostic (END) technology is the medical diagnostic field devoted to the recording and study of electrical activity in the brain and nervous system.
Outlook	Faster-than-average-job growth
Median Income	$53,500 per year average in 2008
Work Context & Conditions	END personnel work primarily in neurology-related departments of hospitals, but many also work in clinics and the private offices of neurologists and neurosurgeons.
Minimum Education Requirements	Technical Program Academic High School Program
Skills	Monitoring, Critical Thinking, Operation and Control, Quality Control Analysis, Active Listening, Time Management, Troubleshooting, Equipment Maintenance, Active Learning, Complex Problem Solving, Operation Monitoring, Reading Comprehension, Science
Abilities	Oral Expression, Manual Dexterity, Deductive Reasoning, Problem Sensitivity, Written Comprehension, Near Vision, Information Ordering, Inductive Reasoning

Job Category		Healthcare Practitioners & Technical
Job Description		Electroneurodiagnostic END technology is the scientific field devoted to the recording and study of electrical activity of the brain and nervous system. Technologists record electrical activity arising from the brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerves, and somatosensory or motor nerve systems using a variety of techniques and instruments. The END technologist can be involved in one or more of the following diagnostic procedures: electroencephalography (EEG), evoked potential (EP), polysomnography (PSG), nerve conduction studies (NCS), long-term epilepsy monitoring (LTM) and intraoperative monitoring (IOM). The technologist takes the medical history; documents the clinical condition of patients; understands and employs the optimal use of EG, EP, PSG, and NCS equipment; and applies adequate recording electrodes. Among other duties, the END technologist also understands the interface between EEG, EP, PSG, and NCS equipment and other electrophysiological devices and procedures; recognizes and understands EEG/EP/NCS/sleep activity displayed; manages medical emergencies in the laboratory; and prepares a descriptive report of recorded activity for the interpreting physician. The responsibilities of the technologist may also include laboratory management and the supervision of END technologists. END technologists understand neurophysiology and recognize normal and abnormal electrical activity. They act as eyes and ears for specially trained doctors who later review and interpret the data. Considerable individual initiative, reasoning skill, and sound judgment are all expected of the electroneurodiagnostic professional. According to ASET, END technologists can be involved in some of the following procedures: 1. The electroencephalogram EEG is a recording of the ongoing electrical activity of the brain. An EEG can assist in the diagnosis of a variety of neurological problems from common headaches and dizziness to seizure disorders, strokes and degenerative brain disease. The EEG is also used to determine organic causes of psychiatric symptoms and disabilities in children and can assist physicians in determining irreversible brain death. 2. Intraoperative neuromonitoring IONM is conducted on patients undergoing surgery. Patients having surgery on arteries in the neck or around the heart often have EEG monitoring performed during the procedure, providing the surgeon with additional information about brain function. Evoked potentials are sometimes used to assess nerve function during surgical procedures involving the spinal cord or brain. 3. Long-term monitoring LTM is a prolonged EEG, accompanied by continuous video monitoring, which can record both the clinical events and EEG recording to aid in the diagnosis of seizures and other neurological disorders.  4. The evoked potential EP is a recording of electrical activity from the brain, spinal nerves, or sensory receptors that occurs in direct response to external stimuli. EP waveforms require sophisticated computer equipment to extract data that will allow physicians to determine the functional state of these pathways. This test is commonly performed by the technologist during surgery on the spine to help the surgeon make sure nerves are not damaged during the operation. Evoked potentials are also performed in a clinical END laboratory, using either earphones to stimulate the hearing pathway, a checkerboard pattern on a T.V. screen to stimulate the visual pathway, or a small electrical current to stimulate a nerve in the arm or leg. 5. The polysomnogram PSG is a special electroneurodiagnostic procedure that uses EEG and other physiologic monitors to evaluate sleep and sleep disorders. Physicians use sleep tests to identify dysfunction in sleep/wake cycles, to diagnose breathing disorders during sleep, and to evaluate treatment of these disorders. 6. Nerve conduction studies NCS evaluate electrical potentials from peripheral nerves. Technologists stimulate the nerve with an electrical current and then record how long it takes the nerve impulse to reach the muscle.
Working Conditions		END personnel work primarily in neurology-related departments of hospitals, but many also work in clinics and the private offices of neurologists and neurosurgeons. Growth in employment within the profession is expected to be greater than average, owing to the increased use of EEG and EP techniques in surgery; in diagnosing and monitoring patients with epilepsy; and in diagnosing sleep disorders. Technologists generally work a 40-hour week, but may work 12-hour days for sleep studies and be on call for emergencies and intraoperative monitoring.
Salary Range		According to ASET, "Salaries depend on education, experience, level of responsibility, type of employment, and area of the country. Consequently, salaries range from $31,075 for new graduates of END programs to over $70,000 per year for lab managers or independent contractors. The average salary for all END technologists across the country was $47,674 according to the data collected from END laboratories in the spring of 2006. Technologists who held professional credentials, college degrees, and who owned their own business commanded the highest salaries."

Education Required		ASET recommends attending a program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). While there is still limited access to schools around the country, some accredited schools are expanding access to their programs through online, distance education. Today's END curriculum includes courses on neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, electrode placement and application methods, electroencephalography, and evoked potentials, along with an introduction to nerve conduction studies, polysomnography, long-term and ICU monitoring and intraoperative neuromonitoring.   Once an individuals graduate from an END program and within two years of entering the workforce, they are strongly encouraged to take and pass a national examination for professional credentials in an area of electroneurodiagnostic specialty.
Recommended High School Courses
Postsecondary Instructional Programs		Education and Training, English Language, Public Safety and Security, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology, Customer and Personal Service, Computers and Electronics, Mechanical
Certification and Licensing		The competency standard for END is successful completion of national board examinations for professional credentials. Professional credentials are available in EEG, evoked potentials, intraoperative monitoring, polysomnography and nerve conduction studies. According to the American Board of registration of Electroencephalographic and Evoked Potential technologists (ABRET), "In order to take the EEG and EP ( evoked potential) exams, technologists must meet ONE of the following eligibility requirements: ---Complete a CAAHEP-accredited END Program * ---Provide proof of at least an associate's degree plus one year of experience in END ---Have at least three years of experience in END In order to take the CNIM (certifed neurophysiologic Intraoperative monitoring technologist) exam, technologists must meet one of the following eligibility requirements: ---Provide proof of at least a bachelor's degree and documentation of 100 cases monitored in the operating room ---Provide proof of another health care credential and documentation of 100 cases monitored in the operating room

Interest Area		Investigative Involves working with ideas and requires an extensive amount of thinking.
Work Values		Achievement Get a feeling of accomplishment. Security Have steady employment. Ability Utilization Make use of individual abilities. Activity Busy all the time.
Skills		Monitoring Assess how well someone is doing when learning or doing something. Critical Thinking Use logic and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches. Operation and Control Control operations of equipment or systems. Quality Control Analysis Conduct tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance. Active Listening Listen to what other people are saying and ask questions as appropriate. Time Management Manage one's own time and the time of others. Troubleshooting Determine what is causing an operating error and deciding what to do about it. Equipment Maintenance Perform routine maintenance and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed. Active Learning Work with new material or information to grasp its implications. Complex Problem Solving Solving novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world settings. Operation Monitoring Watch gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly. Reading Comprehension Understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. Science Use scientific methods to solve problems.
Abilities		Oral Expression Able to convey information and ideas through speech in ways that others will understand. Manual Dexterity Able to make quick, coordinated movements of one or two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects. Deductive Reasoning Able to apply general rules to specific problems to come up with logical answers, including deciding whether an answer makes sense. Problem Sensitivity Able to tell when something is wrong or likely to go wrong. This doesn't involve solving the problem, just recognizing that there is a problem. Written Comprehension Able to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. Near Vision Able to see details of objects at a close range (within a few feet of the observer). Information Ordering Able to correctly follow rules for arranging things or actions in a certain order, including numbers, words, pictures, procedures, and logical operations. Inductive Reasoning Able to combine separate pieces of information, or specific answers to problems, to form general rules or conclusions. This includes coming up with a logical explanation for why seemingly unrelated events occur together.

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Job Outlook		Detailed information not available at this time.
More Information		Committee on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, American Medical Association - Health Care Careers, American Society of Electroneurodiagnostic Technologists
References		American Society of Electroneurodiagnostic Technologists, Inc. [ASET] online at http://www.aset.org/show/Your_Guide_to_the_Profession/Career_Information American Medical Association's Health Professions Career and Education Directory (2009-2010)on the Internet at http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/16035.html Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, Clinical Laboratory Technologist and Technicians, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos096.htm O*NET online on the internet at http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/29-2011.00